It seems as though manufacturers have been recently taking their vehicles to the Nurburgring for testing as of late, including Hyundai.

The latest vehicle to be seen by our spies lapping the Green Hell is, unusually, the new generation Hyundai Santa Fe. Unsurprisingly, the next-generation Santa Fe is still heavily camouflaged with dark black cloth and faux-panels mixed together.

As previously mentioned, the upcoming Santa Fe is said to feature a front fascia similar to that of the Kona B-segment crossover. It now features a what looks like a pair of LED day-time running lights while the headlights are mounted lower. Though covered, the center grill seems to appear similar to one found on the Elantra GT.

Moving towards the side, one is met with more black camouflage. It does appear to be longer than the current generation Santa Fe, meaning more leg room. There are also four-wheel disc brakes all around. Upon closer inspection of the photo, one can also see a roll-cage on the B-pillar possibly protecting the driver or to provide additional rigidity to the chassis.

At the rear, there are even more faux panels hiding the size of the rear. From the photos there seems to be diffuser mated to the rear bumper. Apart from the slim LED tail lights and dual-tip exhaust, there is nothing else to be seen.

Those with keen eyes would have already spotted the Santa Fe sporting Recaro bucket seats and the driver wearing racing overall and a helmet. Considering that the Santa Fe in question is also fitted with a roll-cage, could it be that Hyundai is working on an N-model Santa Fe? Our spies mentioned that there was not much roll from the big crossover considering it is taking on a banked corner. With most of the Hyundai lineup receiving N variants denoting their performance, could it be that the Santa Fe will get an N version too?

Our spies mention that the Santa Fe is said to be powered by a range of gasoline and diesel engines. FWD will come as standard and AWD will come as an option. The next-generation Santa Fe could arrive in showrooms towards the end of 2018.